Posted on 03/30/2006 7:48:09 AM PST by SmithL
Sacramento -- Film director Rob Reiner resigned Wednesday as chairman of the state children's commission he helped create, and a Democratic lawmaker said he would ask state auditors to broaden an investigation to look at what he called "a potential pattern of coordination between a political agenda and the commission's work.''
Reiner and the First 5 California Children and Families Commission are under scrutiny for a publicly funded advertising campaign last year touting the benefits of preschool that partially coincided with Reiner's effort to gather signatures for a June ballot measure that would provide free preschool to all 4-year-olds.
Lawmakers already have asked state auditors to look at the relationships between the ads and the political campaign. Assemblyman Dario Frommer, D-Glendale, who originally asked for the review, said Wednesday he would expand the request to make sure auditors look at past ad campaigns from the commission.
His request comes after a Chronicle review of actions by the commission in 2003 that showed that it also paid for pro-preschool commercials during a period when Reiner and the state teachers union began promoting an initiative that would have raised some property taxes to pay for K-12 education and preschool programs. The initiative eventually was scrapped, but Frommer said the 2003 example again showed signs of an overlap between public expenses and a political campaign.
"There are legitimate questions about the timing of several of the media buys and whether there was coordination,'' said Frommer.
Reiner's resignation from the commission came two weeks after he insisted he had done nothing wrong and would not quit the job, which is unpaid.
(Excerpt) Read more at sfgate.com ...
Buh bye, Meathead. Next stop: the pokey.
Nah, no pokey for meathead. I'm surprised he even resigned. Such scandals are reserved for Republicans only.
Typical leftist, meathead is. THe ends justify the means, blah, blah, blah.
Except in California, where there are no more Republicans left in government. So, the Demon-rats occasionally have to serve up one of their own (remember Gray-out Davis?) to appease the voting lemmings (er, public).
I've heard that he hates it!
(I wonder if Norman Lear had in mind creating an icon of young, leftie idiocy that would resonate for years. [sarcarm])
(end sarcasm)
I hear Alex "Balls (in the)Wind" is going to take the post...
Well, that should leave more food for the rest of the panel anyway.
Interesting that a 'Rat assemblyman is further pressing the issue...will wonders never cease?
I nominate Lionel.
Frankly shocked he actually resigned. So much money from the cigarette tax no longer in his control. The 'First Five' ads for statewide pre-school for all have disappeared from the TV. He is a slug. Someone should have put salt on him a long time ago.
Speaking of a 'climate of corruption'????
'You sure?
I'm thinking all the ads promoting young childrens' health are part of this, too, like the one where the kid asks his mom for some diabetes, etc?
I didn't make that connection. I will be more aware in the future!
I'm not positive it's the same thing, but every time I see those ads, they give me the creeps.
Either they show the kids unsupervised, or they imply they're in the hands of neglectful parents.
But seriously, our "Republican" Governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger, has already appointed Hector Ramirez as Reiner's successor.
Hector Ramirez, Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, oversees the programmatic operations of Para Los Niños. Prior to joining Para Los Niños, Ramirez worked for various public and private social service agencies including L.A. County Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS), L.A. County Department of Social Services (DPSS), and the Child Welfare League of America (CWLA).
Ramirez currently serves on several local, national and international committees including the National Council La Raza (NCLR)--California Region Education Committee (Co-Chair), the CWLA International Advisory Committee (Co-Chair), the International Child Welfare Forum (Agency Delegate), and the CWLA National Childcare and Development Advisory Committee. Ramirez is also a board member with SPIN-USA, and served on the Executive Committee for the Los Angeles County Universal Preschool (LAUPK) Initiative.
Ramirez is a certified Team Leader for the Commission on Accreditation for Children and Family Services (COA). He holds a master’s degree in social work from California State University, at Long Beach and a graduate of the Harvard University, Performance Measurement For Effective Non Profit Organization (PMNO).
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